


Past is Prologue

by rivlee



Series: Capua Inc. [4]
Category: Spartacus Series (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Federal Agents, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-05-02
Updated: 2013-06-25
Packaged: 2017-12-10 05:51:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,685
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/782542
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rivlee/pseuds/rivlee
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Duro and Crixus are tasked with bringing a former agent back into the fold.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [amorekay](https://archiveofourown.org/users/amorekay/gifts).



> Part of the Capua Inc. verse. Unbeated. Title pulled from Shakespeare's _The Tempest_. Background Crixus/Naevia, Barca/Pietros, and Barca/Auctus.

Duro Bauer sort of loved his job. It was all he really had in life beside his brother, who was one of his co-workers, and his friends, also all his co-workers. Life had fucked him over about five thousand different ways before he was even legal. When you’re only sixteen years old and a car accident wipes out your parents and twin baby sisters, you get a little angry, you go a little crazy, and you and your brother may or may not become enemies of the state in an effort to stay alive. 

He may have been born Guillaume Duro Hoffmann, but that was a life and name left behind in Munich. He liked where was now, even if Agron had run away with Spartacus’ team to fuck off to L.A. for Nasir’s training sessions. It meant Oenomaus would pair Duro with one of three people for the upcoming month: Mira, Varro, or Crixus. Any option was good for Duro; unlike his brother he _could_ make friends and he knew how to share and play nice. 

“Pup, you’re with me today,” Crixus bellowed before Duro was even out of the elevator. 

Duro frowned at the cup of regular black coffee in his hand. He should’ve known it would be Crixus and gotten espresso. 

When Agro and Duro first found themselves in the clutches of this government agency (Code Name: Capua Inc., passing off as a nondescript insurance company) it was decided by the higher-ups that the brothers needed to be trained separately. They claimed some bullshit about judging their effectiveness according to prior examples that _so_ weren’t the Hoffman, now Bauer, brothers. Agron got placed in the loving motivational-speech giving hands of Spartacus. Duro got dumped into the hungover, recovering from a gunshot wound to the abdomen, more pissed off than an angry rhino, talons of Crixus. It worked out pretty damn well in the end. Yeah, Crixus could be an asshole, but he was Duro’s kind of asshole. He was the kind of guy you wanted on your team; the kind to stab you in the front. Spartacus was bit more underhanded when he needed to get shit done. Crixus favored Duro’s own method of blowing-shit-up to make a point. In retrospect, Oenomaus probably really fucking regretted the decision to pair them together. 

In fact, they hadn’t been paired since they started that totally accidental fire in a flophouse bathroom during an interrogation. Duro still maintains his hand just slipped. He did admit attempting a practical demonstration of making a molotov cocktail in a fire hazard was not his brightest idea. Hey, at least no one died and the city used it as an excuse to bulldoze the abandoned area and build a school on the land. It all worked out in the end, and really, they should’ve got the keys to the city or some shit. That was some fucking civic duty in action. 

Crixus didn’t like a lot of people, outside of Naevia, Gannicus, Oenomaus, Barca, and Pietros-by-proxy, so the fact he even hung-out with Duro outside of work said a lot. Oenomaus wasn’t _stupid_ though, Duro noticed the lack of suit jacket or service weapon on Crixus’ body. That meant paperwork, which meant paper cuts, which meant they’d both be down in the lab begging Laeta for some Neosporin and Band-Aids. He frowned at his coffee cup again; definitely should’ve gone for the espresso.

**********************  
There was a conference room table full of boxes and files; they were also piled up against one of the walls, and Barca just grunted as he dropped the last of them off. He glared at the room, as if the very sight of all the paperwork was his own personal hell, and left without a word.

They were researching someone, per Oenomaus’ orders, an Andrew Smith, and Christ, did that have to be a fake name. Duro had already spotted the name _Auctus Peroulas_ on various papers, and he had the _slight_ impression that Barca wasn’t too damn happy about it all.

Duro slid into one of chairs and rolled over to where Crixus was standing. “So, who is this guy? Barca seems extra pissed off about the job.”

Crixus snorted. “Barca’s too close to the mark. Auctus was one of Batiatus Sr.’s boys. He left when Titus did. I got to stay in the takeover, so did Oenomaus and Barca, but Auctus wasn’t ever going to follow Junior, so he got axed.”

“And what does he do now?” Duro asked as he took the armful of files Crixus shoved at him.

Crixus laughed. “Officially? He’s independently wealthy and teaches self-defense courses at the Boys & Girls Club.”

“Unofficially?” Duro asked. He opened one of the files and saw nothing but blacked-out lines.

“He’s made a career out of fatal sharp force trauma wounds.” Crixus’ almost sounded proud when he said that.

“A knife man,” Duro said. He shrugged. “I can respect that.”

“Dig in, pup,” was Crixus’ only reply. 

Duro didn’t need to be told twice; he liked piecing together a mystery. A black and white photo was paper clipped to an old personnel file. It wasn’t a uniform or ID photo, but a personal one. A young man and woman, both dark of hair and eyes, stood before the ruins of a Grecian temple. It would’ve been a sweet photo if it wasn’t for the knives held in their hands and the grim looks on their faces. Duro flipped the photo over and blanched at the recognizable scrawl of Barca’s handwriting.

_Auc and Kor 2006_

Duro’s eyes went back to the file and there, under emergency contact was a name: _Barca Amari_.

“The plot thickens,” Duro murmured. He got a wadded up ball of paper thrown at him for the effort.

********************

Things hadn’t gone well when Duro had been thrown at Crixus. There’d been a lot of punches thrown, far too many bloody lips, bruised eyes and cheekbones, and a broken nose each. After the initial hatred due to Duro’s inability to follow orders, and Crixus’ inability to not be a fucking asshole to rookies, they got along fine. Both could respect that the other never gave-up. If the teams _had_ to be mixed and divided for major missions and long-term Ops, Duro was always the preferred partner for Crixus in the field. Agron never got over his initial hatred, and resentment often built when Spartacus had an issue with deciding leadership on missions between Barca, Varro, Mira, Agron, and Crixus. Duro had left all ideas of company advancement behind with that many alpha dogs around. He was good in support, and he did a fucking amazing job at it. Donar agreed with him, and since Donar was the most sensible one of them outside Mira, Duro always congratulated himself on that. 

As well as they worked in the field, he and Crixus fucking demolished the recon and research side of things. Crixus let Duro loose on a very long leash, and he made sure to keep him fed, while Duro knew to give Crixus’ space and not comment on how his glasses made him look like a lawyer (or, if he did, to tell him that Naevia thought he looked extra hot like that). 

This Auctus Peroulas was fucking with their good track record for getting shit done. Auctus was a pretty intelligent man; he knew how the system worked which meant the paper trail he left was actual paper. As unique as it was to not do automatic billing and internet payments, it also meant having to sift through thousands of accounts marked by various companies. 

Duro rubbed at his eyes and wished he brought his own glasses instead of contacts today. “Do you think we can get Pietros to open the evidence locker and get us some military grade speed?”

Crixus snorted. “You need to learn endurance, pup.”

Duro let that comment slide, but only because he had to unravel the enigma wrapped in mystery wrapped in Area-51 that was this Auctus. 

The whole point of Capua Inc. was to basically act as Internal Affairs for all the alphabet agencies. No one looked at the employees and expected them to be federal agents, so it worked pretty damn well. Mostly they were trying to fix all the shit and fuck-ups before they made international news pages and twitter feeds. Sometimes they were just checking new possible employees. Duro didn’t get _why_ they were going after this guy. He’d already worked for them, had stayed below radar in the years since, and it’s not like they _should_ drag him in on sins committed in a former life. Every single one of them had a whole cemetery of skeletons in their closets. Duro and Agron used to be thieves. Crixus boosted cars. Naevia had worked as a counterfeiter. Mira was an honest-to-god-spy. Spartacus was a mercenary. Barca could rig you a deadly weapon out of a paperclip and one of his hairbands. None of them came from clean records in their past lives, and now they were working to fix the shit elsewhere. They’d never get _everybody_ ; the government was too deep in its own fuck-ups to fix that, but they could stop some of it.

They had more important shit to do than this current task. 

“Why?” Duro asked.

Crixus looked up. “I’ll tell you when you’re older.”

Duro stood up and did a flouring interpretative dance movement of one-fingered salutes, but it was enough to make Crixus laugh, so he counted it as a win.

**********************

They’d moved to the bar across the street after Crixus had made an executive decision.

“Why are we here again?” Duro asked.

“Working lunch,” Crixus declared. “We need more beer for this.”

Duro wasn’t about to argue that fact. His fingers were throbbing with paper cuts. His hands were covered with ink, and he was pretty sure he had some document’s imprint stuck to his face and no one was bothering to tell him. A lot of people were staring at Duro in the bar, and he hadn’t received so many of those looks since he cut his hair.

“Seriously, is there a post-it on my face?” he asked.

Crixus looked up from his salad and shook his head. “You’re so fucking weird, pup.”

Yeah, there was definitely something on his face. He was too tired to even bother with it. 

“Why do we have to find this guy so badly?” he asked. He normally didn’t care, but Oenomaus normally didn’t check on their progress every hour.

“Rumor has it Quintus is moving to an assistant directorship at one of the alphabets. He’ll get the job because he’s got the dirt. Oenomaus will be our Director. He needs someone in his place.”

Duro dropped his fork in surprise. “You, Barca, and Spartacus don’t count?”

Crixus smirked. “We all lack a certain discipline. Auctus has it; Oenomaus never wanted him gone. If he has to drag him back in by unearthing all the bodies he’s buried, then he’ll do it.”

Duro wrinkled his nose. He didn’t think the guy could be _that_ valuable. Who would cut such an asset just because he disagreed with daddy?

“He’s really that good?”

Crixus nodded. “And unlike the rest of us, Auctus can achieve subtlety. He doesn’t _like_ it, but he can do it.”

“Can’t Melitta or Gannicus take the job?” Duro asked. 

Crixus shook his head. “Personal conflicts for them both. Auctus is really the best option. It might cause some tension in our current ranks, but _he_ was the one who got the dirt on half the people heading departments now.”

“For which of the alphabets?” Duro asked.

“All of them,” Crixus said. He shrugged. “Like I said, he was damn good at his job. Gannicus and Barca taught me a lot, but Auctus was the one who taught me to get mean; to get brutal. He was the first fucking person here who didn’t try to sugarcoat the cost and toll of the job. He’s low on the praise, high on the taunts, but he appreciates loyalty more than anything else. I hope we can find him, or else a higher-up is going put someone in Oenomaus’ places, and it will probably be fucking Glaber.”

Yeah, Duro wasn’t going to support that action. He had an idea of how they could find the guy. He grabbed one more handful of fries and slid out of the booth. “Spot me this time and I’ll get you the next. I think we got a lead.”

“Where are you going?” Crixus asked.

“To beg darling Chadara for her computer skills. I’ve got an idea. Finish your meal or Naevia will hurt me,” he ordered. He patted Crixus’ face, laughing at the disgusted look as greasy fingertips met skin. He had a mission damn it, no time for napkins.

He skidded to a halt in front of Chadara’s desk. “I need you to track two names for me. The first is Kore Peroulas.” He wrote it down real quick on one of her star-shaped post-its. “The second is Corey Smith, C-o-r-e-y. Her brother changed his first name to a basic one, so I’m sure she did too after a bunch of assholes saying it wrong. Check D.C., Maryland, and Virginia for me.”

Chadara slowly shook her head as she leaned forward and pulled a paperclip crown off of Duro’s head. “Two states and the Nation’s Capital for a Smith? Do you _know_ how many people that will result in?”

“Connect it with Andrew Smith or Auctus Peroulas or a combo of those two names. Something tells me there are only two people in their household. They might even be posing as spouses, but I know the paternal big brother look like I know my own heartbeat.” He batted his lashes at Chadara. “Please, my gorgeous Chadara-darling?”

Chadara grabbed the post-it. “Only because you’re pathetic.”

****************************

Three days later and he had a name, Corey Peroulas. Two weeks later, and Duro knew where she lived. She worked on the George Washington University campus, at the Reserves desk in the main library. She’d been taught well, never taking the same way home, but eventually it all lead to the same building. She drove a non-descript Ford Escape, but the other car in front of her tiny house in the suburbs, a Chevy Malibu, had been parked in front of the local Boys & Girls Club over the same past two weeks. Duro did what any former thief with government approval would do: he stole it and parked it in a prime location of Capua Inc.’s parking lot. 

Duro went down to the lab, where the _good_ coffee was kept, to pour himself a celebratory drink. The sight that greeted him completely ruined the sweet taste of victory. Pietros’ lab coat was wrinkled, and he was blankly staring into the coffee pot as if he could make it work by sheer thought. Both were things pretty damn unusual for Pietros who prided himself on a nice appearance and hated the smell and taste of coffee. 

“I’m pretty sure it doesn’t turn on by mental power, but god knows what you lab rats have invented recently,” Duro said.

There was no answer to the joke, which was completely unlike Pietros. He always had a smile, laugh, or a cutting comeback. This Pietros was still and silent.

“Hey,” Duro said as he tapped his shoulder, “you okay?”

“You found Auctus,” Pietros said. Shaky hands sorted through the little packets of sugar and creamer. “I didn’t think you’d find him so quickly. Now he’ll come back.”

Duro didn’t play dumb about what he’d found out. Auctus and Barca were a thing, long ago, before Barca found Pietros. Or, well, found him _again_ , apparently there was some childhood crush thing going on there. Barca fucking worshipped the ground Pietros’ nimbly walked on though; like, he drove an hour out of his way just to get Pietros’ favorite desserts from some bakery, just because _once_ mentioned he dreamed of their éclairs. On missions Barca _always_ tried to contact him as long as they could stay in protocol. They were kind of ridiculous together and even Spartacus and Sura, Mr. and Mrs. Ridiculously In Love, thought them really fucking adorable. 

“Pietros, I really don’t think you have anything to worry about,” Duro said with all the sincerity he felt.

A brittle smile greeted his words. “Auctus was a field agent, a _good_ one. I’m not that. I’m just some guy who knows how to mix and make the good drugs.”

“And Barca just kind of loves you,” Duro said. “Look, I’m sure Auctus wasn’t the first agent Barca messed around with, or the last, but he got _you_ in the end, and I don’t think he’s going anywhere. Well, not unless you _want_ him to.”

“I don’t,” Pietros said. His hands clenched. “I really don’t. I just don’t understand _why_ he didn’t tell you where to find Auctus. I’ve seen that car on our street, that very license plate, with the dog tags hanging from the rearview mirror.”

“They needed to find Auctus on their own,” Barca said.

Duro and Pietros both flinched, and sort of jumped into each other, as they turned to stare at the doorway.

“Auctus pretty much trusts three other people in this world, one being his sister, and I couldn’t risk breaking that bond. We’re _just_ friends, Pietros. We haven’t been together in years; since, god, you were probably in high school.”

“Oh, _that_ helps,” Duro muttered. He sighed as he realized he wasn’t going to get his victory caffeine today. “I’ll leave you lovebirds to it; just don’t break the fridge this time.”

“We didn’t break it,” Pietros said, the frown on his face turning into a smile. “It was just unplugged.”

Duro wriggled his eyebrows. “And just _how_ did that happen?” He was answered with bowed heads and blushes. “That’s what I thought.”

Duro was just stepping out of the elevator when he heard yelling coming from his desk area. Oenomaus’ voice remained calm, but another man was cursing in about six different languages.

“He stole my fucking car, Oenomaus! What kind of people are you hiring these days?”

Oenomaus smiled. “Thieves, like always.” He gestured for Duro to come forward. “Auctus, meet Agent Bauer. I’m sure if you’re polite and willing to listen to my job offer, he will consider returning your keys.”

“These things,” Duro said jingling a set of keys held together by a pigeon keychain. 

The man turned and glared at him, Auctus from the picture, in full color, a little older, and still pretty damn hot. “Yes, those things.” He made to grab them, hands going faster than most people’s reflexes, but Duro was a champion of Sibling Keep Away. He had them tucked in his back pocket before easily sliding past Auctus.

“You heard my boss. If you’re a good boy, you’ll get them _after_ the meeting.”

Duro didn’t know what he expected, but having a random man grab him by the belt buckle and then palm his ass wasn’t typical work-environment behavior, even for him. Duro tipped back, so he firmly had Auctus’ hand, on his ass, on the desk, under Duro’s bodyweight, as Auctus leaned over him, since he wouldn’t give up his hold on Duro’s belt. “You know, I normally require at least some kind of meal first, but sex in public’s always been one of my turn-ons, so I guess we can forgo that this time.”

Auctus backed away in disgust, and glared at Oenomaus. “Where the fuck did you find this kid?”

“Germany,” Oenomaus said. “He comes in a set; wait until you meet his older brother. Now, shall we?” 

“Fucking government jackoffs,” Auctus mumbled. “I did not spend the past six years of my life living clean to deal with this fucking bullshit.”

“How clean is it, if you’re running an underground company with your sister and a D.C.-Metro detective?” Duro asked. “I mean, most people wouldn’t put the pieces together, but I’ve always loved puzzles.”

Auctus stalked back over him. “Stay the fuck away from my sister.”

Duro grinned. “Too late. I found her first, but look how I didn’t touch her, contact her, or threaten her. I’m not an asshole; just good at my job.”

Auctus growled. “I don’t like you.”

“Oh, they never do at the start,” Duro said. He patted Auctus’ arm in sympathy. “Don’t worry; you’ll love me in the end. Just ask Crixus.”

“Don’t bother trying to fight the pull of the pup,” Crixus’ agreed from his desk. “It’ll only hurt more in the end.”

“Auctus—meeting room—now,” Oenomaus ordered.

Duro got one last glare from Mr. Peroulas, before he followed Oenomaus. Crixus rolled over to him. “You did good, pup. I think he might even like you.”

Duro was about to reply with something truly genius when the elevators slid open to reveal his brother and some other people he didn’t care about in that moment. He launched over Crixus’ chair and into Agron’s already waiting arms.

“You’re early! What’d you bring me?”

“Those two acting like idiots; Barca and Pietros defacing the break room downstairs; Oenomaus talking very seriously to somebody; another typical day in paradise,” Mira said as she shoved by their display of brotherly affection.

“Do they do this every time?” Nasir asked Spartacus.

“Yup,” Spartacus said in the way of the truly resigned.

Duro didn’t care. His brother was home, safe and alive; he’d done a kickass job on his mission; a hot guy had grabbed his ass; and Duro could see the distinct shape of his favorite saltwater taffy seller’s value boxes in Nasir’s bag. Not a bad month of work, if you could get it.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A tiny Kore pov follow-up

Kore looked up from her plate as the front door slammed. She exchanged a look with Castus and sighed. If Auctus was making a scene, that meant things didn’t go well.

“Fucking kid thinks he can fucking just steal my goddamned car and I’ll let it go without any retribution. I’ll show you some fucking skills you little jackass,” her brother said, mostly to himself, as he stomped up to the office.

“Well, I guess he got his car back,” Castus said. He was trying not to laugh; the fact that _anyone_ could manage to steal something from Auctus, let alone his car, was pretty damn hilarious.

Kore pushed back from the table. “I better go find out what’s wrong before he inadvertently hacks something and starts a cyber-war with a foreign country.”

“Because only you get to do that?” Castus asked. 

She slapped the back of his head as she passed. “Eat your dinner,” she ordered. 

The Peroulas siblings had been living here for six years, ever since Auctus left Capua Inc. in the not-so hostile takeover. They’d done some freelancing as a brother-sister team since then, picking up Detective Castus Williams from one of his undercover assignments. He made a great teammate, an even better roommate, and a hell of a friend when Kore needed someone to bitch at. He was the one who made sure her asshole of an ex, who never bothered to inform her he was married, still got a parking ticket at least once a week. Last she heard his precious Mercedes had been booted in his own designated parking spot. The cause was found to be a paperwork glitch that was certainly not at all created by Castus’ hands. 

She deliberately stomped up the stairs so as not to startle Auctus; he could get single-minded in his pursuit of what he viewed as righteous justice and it was never good to surprise him. She knocked on his office door before slipping inside.

“They want you back, don’t they?” she asked.

Auctus nodded. “Oenomaus isn’t demanding my return quite yet, but it’s heavily implied he’ll make my life hell if I don’t follow like a good little soldier.”

It didn’t sound like much of a threat to Kore. Quintus had said something similar when Auctus first left, and they had just done just fine without the power of Capua Inc. behind them. Something must’ve shown on her face because her brother shook his head. 

“Oenomaus is not Quintus, Kore. He’s a man who eats, breathes, and lives honor. He won’t be bought off with a shiny new position or contact. He’s one of the most dangerous things of all: an honest and genuine man who is a true believer in his cause.”

Kore only knew Oenomaus as the tall man with the wonderful smile who always brought her a cupcake as a treat, even when she’d turned into a difficult preteen who once yelled at him to fuck off. He’d still shown _care_ for his co-worker’s bratty younger sister who was mad at the world for all it had ripped from her. In the subsequent years she hadn’t thought of him much, and never considered him a threat. 

“Why would he steal your car though?” Kore asked.

“ _He_ didn’t,” Auctus said. “It was one of his flying monkeys. The fucker even had it detailed. What kind of sick fuck does that?”

Kore shrugged. “I thoughtful one who probably couldn’t stand the smell of leftover meatball sub,” she guessed. “At least he didn’t damage it.”

The lines of Auctus’ brow wrinkled as he typed away. “In retrospect, it offered me a choice right from the start. I could’ve stolen my own car back, but Kore, he even managed to swipe my keys.”

“How did he do that one?” she asked.

Auctus shook his head. “It must’ve been when I was leading the kids in a run. I always leave the keys in my jacket and I left it on the bleachers. I never even noticed him slip in.”

“Maybe he’s not the type to be noticed,” Kore said.

Auctus snorted and flipped his laptop around. On the screen was a full-page picture of a very striking young man. Auctus nodded. “Not likely to forget that face, right?”

“Nope,” Kore agreed. “If he’s not single, I volunteer.” Something flittered across her brother’s face for a second before it got buried deeper, like most of his reactions to those not deemed friendlies. She let it pass for now. “How did they find you?”

“Through you,” Auctus said. He waved his hand at her gasp of indignation. “Don’t apologize; you did everything right. He was just better.”

“How?” Kore asked. She went out of her way to be safe, to throw off routine, to make it difficult for someone to track her. She needed to know how the breach in their protocol occurred.

“The best fucking agents are the devious little shits who appear impatient and stupid, but are actually supremely patient to achieve their mission goals, and intelligent in ways our society doesn’t value. You probably wouldn’t have noticed him, really, on a campus full of college students if he made the effort to blend into his surroundings.” Auctus flipped his computer back around and resumed typing.

Kore got a bad feeling. “You’re not thinking of repaying him the favor, are you?”

“It’s the least I can do,” Auctus said.

She glared at her brother, marched right over to him, and snapped the lap top closed. “I will _not_ have you arrested for hacking into Capua, Inc.’s personnel files.”

“Barca never changed his password,” Auctus argued.

She pointed a finger at him. “And you won’t be getting him into trouble either. If you want to mess with this agent’s head, you’ll do it properly.” 

“Properly?” Auctus asked.

Kore nodded. “Have one of Castus’ buddies on traffic pull him over for speeding or some shit. We’ll get his car impounded and make his life hell for a bit as payback. After that, you can go talk to Oenomaus and see why he _really_ wants you back.” 

Auctus sighed and leaned back in his chair. They had a stare-off for a moment before he finally cursed and nodded in agreement. “You’re right.”

“Always am,” Kore said. She held her hand out to him. “Time for dinner.”

They were halfway down the stairs when the knock came at the door. Castus reached it first, gun in hand, as they silently communicated. He carefully looked through the peephole. “One guy, appears alone and unarmed; pretty hot if you’re down with the curly hair and big eyebrows thing.”

“I can hear you,” the man on the other side said.

Auctus tensed behind her. “You know him?” she asked.

He nodded. “That’s the flying monkey.”

“I prefer the term minion,” the man said. There was a clicking sound and they all kind of stared in shock as the man opened the door. He pocketed his lock pick set and picked up a package. “I brought you a Boston cream pie to apologize for the whole stealing your car shit. Melitta said it was your favorite.” He grinned in a way that clearly stated he was used to getting what he wanted out of pure charm and smiles. 

Kore almost lost it at the strangled noises coming from Auctus’ throat. She hurried down the stairs and grabbed the box before good pastry was sacrificed for the sake of male posturing. She grabbed Castus’ arm and dragged him with her into the kitchen.

He went right to the snack cabinet and pulled out a bag of popcorn. 

“You followed my sister, stole my car, broke into my house, and you think a fucking pie can solve that,” Auctus bellowed.

“It’s a cake really, and yup,” the man said. He barreled into the kitchen. “Hello, Miss Kore, and Detective Williams. I’m Duro Bauer, most likely a new co-worker of Grumpy McSnarly out there.”

“Fucking excuse you?” Auctus asked.

Kore tried very hard not to laugh at her brother, or this Duro, or the whole situation, but she gave up when she saw Castus’ shoulders shaking as well. She did the only thing she could in that moment.

“Who wants pie?”


	3. Getcha Good

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Erika had requested a "Get Me" prompt on tumblr ages on. I wrote it in a mod and canon!au, and originally posted the canon!au one. This is the modern version that was just finished wherein Duro saves Auctus while on the job. Sort of.

Auctus Peroulas kind of really fucking hated his life right now. He was pinned down in a shoot-out with federal agents because of one off-handed comment about Greek revolutionaries which apparently triggered some sort of signal on the wiretapping communication network across the country. His fucking partner, that worthless piece of shit and tailored trousers called Duro Bauer, had fucking bailed on him when the bullets started flying. Auctus was _so_ getting that asshole fired when they got back to work.

“Gentleman, I’d lower your weapons if I were you,” Duro’s voice suddenly came from a bullhorn. “You’re illegally engaging an agent with diplomatic immunity trapped inside that warehouse that is on ground belonging to the tiny landlocked country of Luxembourg, and unless you’d like to inadvertently start an international incident with one of our wealthiest European allies, I’d stop the pissing contest.” Sirens wailed in the distance. “Oh, and I’ve called the LEOs, so unless everyone wants their covers blown and their supervisors called, I suggest you disperse.” 

It took about ten minutes, but soon the warehouse was filled with nothing but the sound of locked guns, running feet, and squealing tires. Auctus didn’t come out of his strategic spot until he heard the all clear. Only one person wandered in; Duro Fucking Bauer himself. 

“ _There was a fire fight_ ,” he quoted.

And no, hell no. Little asshole baby agents did _not_ get to quote _Boondock Saints_ at Auctus when they’d left him pinned down to go fuck off to god knew where. 

“Where the hell were you?” Auctus hissed.

“The toy store,” Duro said. “I had to get the bullhorn and the siren sounds.” He clicked something in his hand and the warehouse filled with a piercing noise. “They don’t let me check out the high-tech toys anymore, so I have to make do. At least this way our cover wasn’t completely blown. There are only so many favors I can all in with the local PD, and most of those are reserved for Agron.”

Auctus didn’t know if he wanted to punch or kiss the kid more. He was quick witted, and that was something that would always make Auctus’ pulse race; the asshole boys with the smart mouths who always turned out to be hidden geniuses somehow. Auctus learned a lifetime ago the value of street smarts, and how much they always attracted him.

“I should honestly fucking shoot you and save myself all the future trouble,” Auctus said.

Duro grinned, as if that was the best compliment ever. “No offense Auctus, but your sister scares me an epic fuckton more than you do. You’re going to have to do more than that to throw me off my game.”

“Really?” Auctus asked as he holstered his gun.

“Really,” Duro said. He was baiting him, and Auctus was no fucking saint.

Duro’s lips were chapped, his mouth gone dry, probably from yelling in the bullhorn, but he tasted of sour apple jolly ranchers and whimpered happily when Auctus bit down just a little harder than playful on his bottom lip. “Gotcha,” he said as he let Duro go. 

“You’re such a bastard,” Duro growled, but his hands were pulling Auctus closer for another taste, so he couldn’t have been too angry.

“Luxembourg?” Auctus questioned when they came up for air and to give their skin a break from the mutual beard burn.

Duro shrugged as he slipped his hand into Auctus’ back pocket and guided them out to the car. It wasn’t their officially assigned one, so Duro must’ve boosted some poor person’s ride again. 

“I mean, it was either that or Liechtenstein, and I at least know some Luxembourgish if they got suspicious.” He frowned at Auctus. “And don’t give me that look. This is one of the cars we have placed strategically around the city so that I don't go around stealing Jane and Joe Civilian's compact cars.”

Auctus let himself have another moment of this enjoyable peace before the shock faded and it all set in. He was not thinking about the fact their first kiss just came in a shot-up warehouse surrounded by bullet casings, a whole five minutes after Auctus decided he wasn’t going to shoot Duro _today_. Castus was making dinner tonight, which meant Pad Thai, which meant they had to get home before Kore ate all of it. Duro didn’t question when Auctus turned towards the house, and not work. He smugly smiled in the passenger seat, and just this once, Auctus let him get away with it.


	4. Fast Forward

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For an anon on tumblr who requested a time stamp fic set in the future wherein Auctus realizes he does love Duro.

It’s not that Auctus Peroulas thought he would never fall in love again after Barca, it’s just that he didn’t expect that revelation to happen like _this_. He expected drama, or fireworks, or something. He did not think it would come with looking up from paperwork, to see the mussed hair and crumpled button-down of Duro Bauer about to collapse at his desk in exhaustion. He had coffee in one hand, paperwork in the other, and like Auctus, he hadn’t been home in a day-and-a-half as they tried to track down dirt on the newest NSA Assistant Deputy Director.

Auctus could admit that attraction had always been there, even when he wanted to murder the bastard for stealing his car. They’d built up a friendship after that, even when Auctus still wanted to slam Duro into a wall, it started to be for different reasons. The mission where they had to pose as couple sort of sealed the deal, (in all manners, with Castus offering helpful advice over their ever-present ear pieces), but Auctus was still surprised to feel that familiar mixture of emotions that could only mean one thing.

“Holy fuck, I do actually love you,” he said. 

Duro choked on his coffee, spit most of it back into his cup, and got some on his shirt. He still looked gorgeous, in his own slovenly way. “Okay, I’ve had better declarations of love, but I don’t know if they’ve been as sincere.”

Auctus shrugged as he turned back to his paperwork. “It’s as sincere as you’re going to get.”

“I figured,” Duro said. There was movement behind Auctus and suddenly his chair was being pulled backwards. He got a lap-full of Duro though. “It comes with the territory of being in love with the Supreme King Ice Bastard of Ornery Anger that you are.”

“Oh, is that my whole title?”

“Me and Chadara just call you SKIBO; it’s on your official file,” he said. The grin was pure perfection. “So, you love me, huh?”

“Unfortunately for us both, yes,” Auctus agreed.

“Because I’m smart, and hot, and bring you surprise baked goods?” Duro asked.

“Because you’re smart, and hot, and are as dedicated to your job, friends, and family as I am, and that says a hell of a fucking lot.” 

Duro ginned as he wound his fingers into Auctus’ hair. “I guess I can accept that.”

“Well,” Auctus said as he tucked his fingers under Duro’s shirt and rubbed the warm skin of his back, “it was either that or brainwashing.” He only allowed himself to kiss the tip of Duro’s nose, knowing that someone was always watching, and that unlike Pietros, neither Duro or Auctus had a voyeurism kink. “We should get home.”

“We totally should,” Duro agreed, “but you’re still getting a celebratory blow job in the car, just FYI.”

Auctus could live with that, honestly. “The sacrifices I make for you.”

Duro gripped Auctus’ chin and openly defied their _No Mouth Kisses In the Office_ rule. “I’m worth it,” he murmured against Auctus’ lips.

“Completely,” Auctus agreed. He pushed Duro off his lap, despite the protests. “Stop giving Chadara free footage she should be paying for.”

“But we _owe_ her,” Duro said, “and I have no patience when it comes to you, especially when you insist on rolling your sleeves up like that and denying me a quick fuck in the one strategic area where the cameras don’t reach.”

“I don’t want to know how you know that,” Auctus said as he turned his desk lamp off.

“Duh,” Duro said, “Nasir, of course. He put in a code that keeps the camera from doing a full rotation.”

Auctus could’ve never dreamed of a man like Duro, not even in his wildest hate-fantasies, but he was pretty fucking lucky to have found him, even with the too-close relationship with his brother, and his almost brother-in-law. “You’re weird,” he said as he took Duro’s hand and pulled him to the elevator.

“But you love me, and I love you, and oh fuck, I’m about to start quoting _Barney_.” 

Yup; completely fucking in love with the weirdo bastard.


	5. Future Ficlet: Unbind Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set far in the future of this 'verse, a tumblr prompt for chewwbecca.

“You know,” Auctus said as he stepped over the dead body in front of him, “when you suggested we change-up Date Night, I didn’t realize this was what you had in mind.”

Duro laughed, even though it had to hurt his surely cracked ribs, and his bloody lips. There were bruises all over his face, and his wrists were raw from where the zip tie had dug into the skin while he took a beating. The adrenaline was still running through Auctus’ system, but it was starting to bleed out, with Duro finally found. It was with shaking hands that he took a knife and cut the ties. Duro tried to stand, but his legs gave out, and Auctus quickly gathered him close. 

“You always did make my knees go weak,” Duro joked. He coughed and made a face at the gunk that came out. “That is not attractive.”

“Why are you still talking?” Auctus asked. “Let’s get the hell out of here.”

“Always eager to get me home,” Duro said. He hesitated for a moment, a small sign of the amount of pain he was in. “My ankle may be dislocated. I sort of jumped out a window when they first attacked.”

That explained the mess they’d found at Fifth Street. Shards of glass with Duro’s blood on them had scattered across the sidewalk into the road. It had been a fucking terrifying three days. Auctus could smell the stale sweat on Duro’s body, and he wondered how long Duro had run before being caught. They’d found a whole trail of bodies before they got to this warehouse, where Duro must’ve been finally overwhelmed by injuries, stress, and numbers. 

“Hospital,” Auctus said. “Hospital first, then you’ll have to debrief, then we’ll get your brother out of the drug-induced coma Pietros put him in, and we’ll go home.”

“Did Pietros really drug Agron?” Duro asked. “I wondered where that asshole was.”

“He punched a wall, then a mirror, kicked out a glass door, and crashed it car. For the cost of property damage alone, Nasir made an executive decision to drug him the fuck out.”

Duro grinned then, almost proud. “That’s my big bro.” He looked around and started to shuffle forward for a moment, determined to make it on his own. He cursed under his breath before looking up at Auctus. “You only get to do this once, you understand. Once, this is the _only_ time I will allow it, because I want to get the fuck out of here and I can’t walk. My ribs aren’t broken, so there’s no worry about my lungs getting perforated, so revel in this chance, and don’t fuck up your back, so you better bend with your goddamned knees.” He wrapped his arms around Auctus’ shoulders and said, “Up.”


	6. Ficlet: Call Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Takes place a few months after the shootout in chapter three.

It was three in the morning on a fucking Monday of all days, when Auctus was woken by the shrill sounds of his phone, blasting _I Want It That Way_ at the highest possible volume.

Auctus was going to track down Duro Bauer and kill him. Slowly. 

“What?” he growled into his phone.

“Why don’t you love me? Everyone does in the end, but you, you’re all mean and growly and…indifferent. You’re like the Fitzwilliam Fucking Darcy of Capua Inc,” a drunken Duro lamented. 

Auctus took a deep breath and tried to remember Oenomaus’ lecture about _why_ it was wrong to curse out those who were only attempting to be friendly. “You stole my car; you’ve corrupted my sister; you’ve made it a habit of switching out my lunch for what you claim are healthier options; you’ve made me appointments with a chiropractor without consulting me first; you’ve changed my phone to blare the Backstreet Boys, and you’ve just called me at three in the morning on a Monday in a drunken haze as you compare me to literary characters.” He sighed. “Any one of those reasons would’ve made me shoot you.”

“Oh,” Duro said. He sounded small, and Auctus wanted to punch _himself_. “You haven’t shot me though.”

“Yet,” Auctus added. He slid back into the bed as he looked up at his ceiling. “Duro, I know you have this need to make everyone family, and I understand _why_ , but you can’t bribe people into feeling that way.”

“It’s not bribery if they’re willing,” Duro said. There was a rustling over the line, then a thump, and a small, “Ow.”

Auctus bit the inside of his cheek to hold back a laugh “What’d you do?”

“Slammed my head into the wall,” Duro said. “You have pretty eyes. That’s all I could think last night. This night. Two hours ago. At dinner, you smiled, and you laughed, and all I could think was that your eyes, and eyelashes, and eyebrows are pretty. Then I told Castus who took me out to a bar that had a cow outside of it. A fake cow, not a real one, and I’m pretty sure Agron was the one who brought me home because he always puts the Batman socks on my feet when he does.”

Auctus knew it was wrong to laugh at the completely hopeless, but Duro sounded so sad and serious. “That was very informative, and I appreciate the compliment, but I think we both need to get back to sleep.”

“I don’t want you to be my family,” Duro said quickly. “I mean, I do, but not like a brother. Or a cousin. Like a partner. And I know you don’t totally hate me because you kissed _me_ after that shootout, and you slipped me tongue during that undercover thing at the park, and I’ve done this enough to know when it’s real, and when it’s not, and because Kore said so. So I get that right now I’m more, I don’t know Jane Bennett because I’m holding out for a guy who acted like he was interested in me then blew me off, but I don’t fucking care, because we both know if I got shot tomorrow by you or anyone else, you’d live a life full of regret.”

“Don’t even fucking joke about that,” Auctus hissed. 

“See? Regret,” Duro insisted. “I’m going to sleep now because my bed is comfortable, and my head hurts, and I need to be up in two hours, but after you pay for my hangover cure of a greasy breakfast, we’re going to talk.”

“Why do I have to pay for it?” Auctus asked.

“Because you caused this by being a stubborn jackass; one I still kind of love anyway, but I never said I wasn’t fucked up.”

Auctus felt his heart jump at those words, just the hint of them, whether or not they were true. “I’ll only pay because you’ll be insufferable if I don’t. A word of advice though. The next time you want to confess your love to someone, you might want to sober.”

“I tell you I kind of love you all the time, you just don’t listen, because you’re dead inside,” Duro said. He yawned. “Goodnight, Auctus. I expect you here by six-thirty.”

“Goodnight, Duro,” he said. He ended the call, switched his ringer settings back to something normal, and went to sleep with a smile on his face. He was still going to eventually kill Duro slowly, but at least it would be entertaining.


End file.
